Put the Past Behind
by Shirayuki
Summary: Set couple months behind the end of Book 3. Azula's lost her memories? Jet's alive? Zuko's facing another threat against his country? How will Aang and the crew overcome a new story? JetxAzula, LongxSmell, later on all canon pairings.
1. Chapter One

**Author's note:** I obviously don't own Avatar or else I wouldn't be here writing this.

Please don't flame my pairings because I love ANY and ALL pairings in Avatar so it's kind of useless.

I'm not a professional writer so don't expect too much. I'm just an old bum who hasn't written anything in a long time (cleaned everything out).

I'm also never sure when the next update will be, if there is one, because I write whenever I feel like it.

Remember, comments encourage writers to write!

So hopefully you'll all enjoy this!

* * *

**Chapter One: Princess in Prison and Prince of the Forest**

"Water… please" she panted and begged. Four days now she hadn't been given water and she had to live off the humidity in the air to keep her body from over dehydrating. Her cell was a small bricked and metal windowless room which smelled of her own waste in the corner and raw dirt and mold. It was cold inside, with no light, and only a small pile of straws in the other corner for her to sleep on. Of course it smelled foul, not just the room, but the rags she was in too: torn, unsaturated simple oversized red t-shirt and baggy knee length pants.

She shivered and banged her weak fist against the door again. "Please…" Her golden eyes searched hopefully and desperately beyond the black strands of messy hair in her face. The only way to see out was the fist sized peep hole on the barred door, and no one answered.

She hadn't hear any guard walk past her door for over a week let alone given food or further punishment, which was the one thing she was grateful for being in solitude. But now she'd rather get hammered for the slightest piece of bread to chew on to quiet her empty stomach. Few months ago they'd come in and beat her when she cried or yelled for attention when everyone ignored her needs, but after weeks of neglect, her body was weary and it felt as if her mind was going insane.

The girl slid to the muddy floor with her back against the cold iron door, and rubbed the various browns and purples clumped together into one big dark bruise on her thighs. She felt her tears gather around her eyes but shook her head to stop herself. She can't afford to lose anymore water in her body. Already her body was losing more meat than she was sure she had before she was hauled into the prison, whenever that was. She tried recalling how she got here, but she had idea, rather, she didn't even have the slightest clue as to who she is... or was.

_'Whoever I am, I must've been a very bad person to deserve this.'_ She concluded to herself.

Indeed she was a bad person. Who would have thought the princess of the fire nation, the genius and child prodigy of her generation, would end up in a prison cell in deepest pit in the middle of nowhere, trapped with the deadliest and cruelest criminals from all over the world. Well, perhaps that much was predicted after her defeat against the water bender Katara and the now king of the fire nation and her older brother, Zuko. But no one knew of her amnesia and torture she undergone.

The torture was just inhuman, to be described in one word. No prisoner had ever had as many and heavy beatings as she did, not even the big tough murderers, abusers, and assaulters combined. She had suffered fractured bones, dislocated joints, and countless cuts, leaving her scars and wounds still in need of healing. All in all, the only thing in her memory she could recall were torment and nothing else. She doesn't even know her own name, or what she looks like, having never seen a mirror or given enough water to look into the reflection. All she knew was that she's too scrawny to break out of prison, which, by the way she only guessed must be the prison for such horrible treatment to people.

Then suddenly she heard heavy footsteps. Three, no, five fully sized male guards marched over and stopped right outside her room. She jumped to her feet and immediately scooted to the far corner, hoping to conceal herself in the darkness, though she knew it would do her no good anyway. If someone was kind enough to have gone and fetched her water, there wouldn't be in any need of sending five grown men for her. This had to be another round of whipping. Her face paled, if that was even possible from her already paled face from her confinement and lack of light, and fear raced her heart. And here she thought they finally lost interest in torturing her. What a small break that was.

The door barged open, and sudden light shone in. She reached frantically up to cover her face, and eyes, from being blinded. Her dilated eyes tried to scan the faces of the guards, but failed miserably against the brightness.

"Get up." One of the men spoke strictly, prodding her with a weighty cane. "We have orders from the King to transport you." He jabbed her sides again, harder this time. "Don't make me repeat myself."

She supported herself on the wall to get to her splintered and dirty feet, and followed the men without a word

Perhaps the men wondered why she was so unusually quiet and obedient, perhaps they didn't. Perhaps the princess feared for her fragile life and uncertain future, or perhaps she saw this as an opportunity… for escape.

* * *

"Longshot! Smellerbee!" A slightly hoarse voice shouted through the leaves. A boy n older than seventeen ran through the forest, brushing harshly aside the twigs and branched concealing his way. "Guys! Where are you?"

"Jet?" A high pitched voice asked uncertainly from above. A tomboyish girl with brown fuzzy hair dropped from the tree above and landed next to him. Another second later, a boy around Jet's age and height joined her. "Jet! Where have you been the past week?" She hugged him tightly around the waist with her small arms.

"Yea, I'm back," Jet smiled, or smirked rather, and looked from the girl that is Smellerbee to his best friend Longshot, who gave him an uneasy look. Was that jealousy in his eyes? Jet was surprised at how the always wise and contained Longshot would show jealousy through his eyes, especially when they all know that Jet and Smellerbee thought of each other as nothing more than siblings. 'Man, people sure changed during that time I was 'dead'', Jet thought to himself, and shrugged, pushing Smellerbee gently away. "Good to see you guys too."

"You could've at least left us a note or something," Longshot frowned. "We were so worried you went and got yourself in trouble again."

Okay, so Jet was wrong about the jealousy part, but still, he couldn't deny the fact that Longshot has been quite protective of Smellerbee lately. "Well, I've got some news I figured you guys would want to hear." Their leader said, hoping they'd forgive him. "I didn't have time to tell you two before I left because I was in a hurry."

Longshot wasn't finished with his lecturing and was about to make a comment related to "hurrying" and "death", but thought better and shut his mouth before the words came out.

"News?" Smellerbee asked, not so much concerned about Jet disappearing and reappearing whenever he felt like. She was just glad he was safe. "Good or bad news? Because you know, I don't want to be involved in something that'll have you ending up dead… again." She stressed the word "again".

'These two just won't let me off the hook, huh?' Jet contemplated in his head. "Good news." He leaned against a tree and unsheathed his hooked swords, "I heard from a reliable source that they're moving the Fire Nation's ex-princess, Azula, to the capital, and possibly, the castle. So having to check to see if the words are true, I made a quick trip to the prison she was in, and with a quick disguise and talking to a few loose mouths on top of seeing her escorted out of her cell with my own eyes, it's confirmed that she's to leave, well, today actually."

"Yea, so?" The small girl asked with a raised eyebrow, now folding her arms in front of her. Their archer wasn't very keen on the news as he eyed Jet suspiciously.

"So… we go and capture her. It's our only chance. Besides, they're traveling on the public train, for whatever reason, so it'll be easy to get on."

There was a moment of silence as his two friends stared at him mouths opened, as if he was crazy. Smellerbee was the first to snap back into reality while Longshot remained in his thoughts, "are you CRAZY? No wait, yes, yes you are, but this is just INSANE!"

Longshot, however, remained calm and glanced at Jet with his unchanging serious face. "Why do you need to do this Jet? What does it accomplish? We all know the Fire Lord Ozai was defeated by Aang and his crew, and that Zuko's now the King. The world is in peace now, we can just go back to-" But before he could finish, Jet interrupted him, in an even more serious and strong-willed voice.

"Go back to what, Longshot, what?" Jet chucked one of his blades at the foot of the tree, the blade digging deep into the soil beneath. "We don't have families, remember? We're orphans. We don't have any lives. We lived to fight the Fire Nation. It doesn't matter if Ozai's dead, which I'm sure he's not because Aang wouldn't have the guts to kill him. The fight hasn't ended yet. We take down the Fire Nation or else nothing would change!" Jet's face was hot as he fumed and ranted. "We need to take Azula as hostage."

The only words that Smellerbee could manage out of her mouth were "why Jet? Why…" She had hoped that now the war was over there would be no need of fighting and they could try and resume the life they never had. What Jet was suggesting was another risk, and possibility of destroying the peace Aang and his friends fought so hard for, the peace they themselves fought so hard for.

"Are you sure about this?" Longshot asked. Although settling down with Smellerbee and forming a family with the other Freedom Fighters was what Longshot had in mind, he wasn't about to abandon his friend, whose wound seems harder to heal than anyone else's.

"Definitely." Jet was never more determined.

* * *

She trembled as they jerked her shackles and nearly dragged her across the hallway. From outside she could hear voices she didn't when she was locked up, voices of other cellmates screaming, yelling, begging and pleading behind metal doors. Was that what she sounded like? They continued on until they've reached a small room, again, with no windows, with simple wooden table and a stool, and thankfully it didn't smell half as bad as the one she had been in for the lifespan of her memory. She was suddenly aware of how horrid she smells, being now surrounded by clean smell of wood and… food?

Her mouth watered and her stomach growled against her will. She swallowed her saliva in protest. What kind of torture is this? This was worse than just being beaten. Sure she's been shown her ration of food before only to be dumped to the ground in front of her so she'd have to eat the remains from the filthy ground, but that was better than not having anything to eat right? So what now, are they going to show her perfectly steamed meat buns and tea only to beat her and send her back to her prison feeling hungrier than ever? Secretly she scowled at the guards, and then instantly felt drained again. She didn't have energy to fight or think anymore. She was tired, confused, scared, and just plain miserable.

"Sit, woman." The watch ordered and shoved her into the stool. Without unchaining her constraints, he demanded again, "eat."

Wait, eat? Did he just tell her to eat? She took a glance at the food set in front of her with uncertain muddy yellow eyes. Is this a trick? Make her eat and then beat her up until she throws it all up? She gulped down her fears and hesitantly reached a muddy hand for the hot soft roll. Her stomach felt so painful at the sudden opportunity, it was speaking against her mind and her hands here moving against her will. She doesn't care anymore. She can deal with the consequences later, right now, she could only think of stuffing her stomach, even if the food will come up later.

With that, the girl started shoving handful of steamed dumplings and meat buns down her throat between greedy drinks of tea. She moved so fast her throat hurt from the lack of chewing and she didn't bother letting the tea slide down her face wetting her shirt, nor did she mind the fact that she was eating in the dirt on her hand she smeared on the delicacies. From time to time, she would puke up the food, but she swallowed them back down before they can make it out of her mouth. If they haven't beaten her yet, then they probably wouldn't… unless she wastes the food, possibly.

Surprisingly, nothing happened, besides the disgusted looks she'd get from one or two of the guards from time to time, until she finished all that was on the table. She burped satisfied, her stomach now full and feeling like she's six months pregnant. Almost instantaneously when she consumed the last drop of her tea, the man closest to her hauled her out of the chair.

Out of reflex, her skin instantly goose-bumped and cold sweat of fear soaked her already damp shirt. But there was no punch or slap across the face. He simply directed her out the room to another. This room was much smaller than the room she dined in, around the same size as her cell. It was completely metal with a horizontal pole stretching across the ceiling with rings and a plastic curtain attached. One man pulled open the curtain roughly, revealing only one shower head. Apparently it was a single person shower room.

"Clean yourself off. Towel and clothes are over there" he pointed to the basket in the corner inside the shower area. He unchained only the right side of her wrist cuffs and relocked them onto his own arm. "Don't try anything funny or these men will fry your head off."

'Fire benders.' She thought, but a moment later she pondered how she knew the term and what it was when she clearly couldn't remember even her own name or who she is, or if she knew anyone.

She would've been surprised by her own knowledge, or why she felt more threatened about being chained than fire benders, if it wasn't for the fact that the guards remained in place with no signs of leaving. Wait, they're going to stand here and watch her shower?

"Umm…"

The guard who did all the speaking and the unchaining and re-chaining glared at her, but seemed to know what she was concerned with. He pulled a knee-length plastic certain from one wall to another in between him and her closed so they wouldn't be able to see up past her knees. There was a slit cut on the curtain for their hands to pull through. She supposed this wasn't the first time they had to chain a prisoner who needs showering.

Without complaining, she turned on the shower, and tried to suppress the sigh of bliss that pressured to escape her lips. Was she dreaming? She was given food AND a bath. She had to be dreaming. Or maybe she already died from starvation or disease and this was heaven. No, someone like her wouldn't be in heaven. Maybe this was hell? She didn't bother anymore, and enjoyed the hot water clean off her skin as she scrubbed her dirt and straw covered hair with soap and inhaled the warm vapor into her lungs.

She never felt so alive when she was done drying herself and stepped into fresh Fire Nation peasant clothing. Her long black hair flowed down almost to her waist, and she brushed her fingers through them to clear out the knots in them. After several attempts, and ripping out too much hair in the process, she gave up. Before she could tell the guards she was done, the curtain was pulled opened and the inpatient guard re-attached her cuffs.

Treating her just the tiniest slightest hint more like a human being, they ushered her to the stairs and from there they climbed what must have felt like over thirty flights of steps, until they reached the front gate above ground and when the giant thick wooden and metal doors opened, sunlight poured onto her like lava. She never felt as blind as she did now, her eyes burned gold. But she didn't bother closing them, she let them sting, and let the pain punch her body. She could feel the power filling her. She felt so right out here, so alive. Her eyes quickly adjusted, much faster than any normal person would be having been underground for months.

The first thing her cleared up eyes saw was a train, a small distance across a bridge directly ahead from where they were, waiting at what looks like a small train platform. It took them less than ten minutes to get across the bridge, and when they arrived, the girl could see that there were already some passengers there, most looking uneasy and nervous, quite possibly because this train actually stopped at the station they'd never dreamed would, in front of the infamous prison, Dead Drop. Dead Drop was most known for being dug deep and dark into the ground. Some of the most important prisoners and the Nation's most wanted were sent here just so people wouldn't know. Of course many were sent to Boiling Rock, but they couldn't risk keeping all the deadliest criminals at the same place. Especially not after the prison break incident only a year ago.

When they got to the door of the train, two of the guards got on first before she was shoved in. They made her take the window seat as one man sat down besides her while the rest of the guards took their place in the row before and behind her. Once they sat down, the train took off.

She stared out the window at the beautiful landscape of fields and forests at the foot of mountains in off distance and then at the clear blue sky above. 'This must be a dream…' And then it hit her. She had been so content the past half and hour, that by the time she realized it, she mentally smacked herself, hard. Wasn't she trying to escape? Now she got onto the train that's taking her to who knows where and she'll probably end up in more torture than ever before! _'You idiot!'_ She wanted to hit her head against the wall, hard.

To be Continued...


	2. Chapter Two

**Author's note:** Sorry or the long awaited update! It's been a while since I wrote, and I'm sure there are tons of mistakes. Please keep in mind that English is not my first language. Critiques welcomed.

Remember, comments encourage writers to write!

Anyway, hopefully you'll all enjoy this!

* * *

**Put the Past Behind -Chapter 2-**

The Capital City Prison held one of the most important prisoners in history… Or rather, it was supposed to. There were no signs of intrusion or fighting. All of the guards on duty could swear that no one left or entered this compound, and yet…

Zuko stood staring at the shadow of ashes on the cold stone wall of the cell that was supposed to hold his father… alive. The ashes were painted on the wall in what looks like his father's silhouette.

"How…" the new king gritted his teeth. "How did this happen?!" He raised his voice so loud that one could probably hear his anger outside the prison. The young man shot a demanding look at the warden, a tall muscular man with gray hair and without much facial expression.

"We're still investigating, my Lord. There is no sign of Ozai anywhere. We can only assume that the ashes on the wall belong to him. Doctor Nen was unable to determine the cause either. It's as if he… self-detonated, my Lord."

Doctor Nen is one of the best doctors in the world, famous for healing wounds that no other man is able to, not to mention that he is also a known expert on human death. There is even a myth on how he was able to bring dead soldiers back to life and return them to their families. If he isn't able to find the cause of death, or the owner of the ashes, then no one can.

Zuko clenched his fists. Even if Ozai was a cruel man, he was still his father. Zuko had believed in changing his father, no matter how impossible it seemed. As long as he's alive, there is always hope.

_'And now he is dead.'_ Zuko thought to himself.

"Tighten up security, captain." Zuko ordered, though everyone in the room was aware that there was no use in tightening security that was already as tight as it could get. The Fire Lord turned his heels, and without looking at his father's shadow on the wall, left.

"I'm going to find whoever did this, and-"

"And what, Zuko? Kill him?" Mai retorted, giving her husband a concerned look. They were now travelling in a private coach heading back to the Imperial Castle. She placed a gentle hand over his tense fists on his lap. "The war is over, Zuko. You promised the people that there will be no more bloodshed. We will find the murderer and hold him responsible in court."

In the back of his head, Zuko was remembering the time his father diving into water to save him from drowning. 'He was still my father…' Zuko relaxed his hands slightly but refused to look at Mai. "You're right. It's just," he sighed, "it's just so hard to lose another family member."

"I know," his wife pulled his head to rest on her shoulder, "I know..."

"I can see the train approaching, Jet!" Longshot whispered as loud as he dares. The arrow sniper reviewed the plan in his head again as his friends joined him. The three of them were now lying low on the edge of the dried cliff looking down at the train track directly below.

Several hours ago…

"Okay so here's the plan," Jet started, flattening a map on a rock large enough to seat all three of them. "Here's Dead Drop and here's the capital," he chewed on a long strand of wheat grass, as usual. "And here's where we are. There's only one chance for us to get ourselves on the ride, and that's here." He drew an 'x' mark.

"And remind me again, WHY we want to get on the train?" Smellerbee protested, hoping to change her friend's mind. "What makes you think the three of us non-benders can take out Azula anyway?"

"Tsk tsk tsk," Jet waved a finger at Smellerbee. "Why do you think they cuff bender prisoners?"

"Duh, because they're prisoners?"

Jet shook his head at her answer. "Wrong."

Longshot rubbed his chin in thought. "I see your point. Benders can easily fight even with their hands cuffed. It makes sense for non-bender prisoners but why put them on benders?" Smellerbee shrugged at his query and they both looked at their leader, "but you don't have proof that those cuffs take away their bending… do you?"

Jet grinned. "I just so happen to have this in my possession." His grin widened as he showed his prize to his friends.

"How did you get your hands on a prison handcuff?!" Smellerbee started agape.

"It's not that hard, with a little bit of acting and bribing. Anyway, that's beside the point. I'm sure the handcuffs, or at least the ones used in Dead Drop, are genuine bender blocking tools." Jet stashed the metal rings back into his side pack. "Now, if I calculated right, the train will arrive here," he pointed at the 'x' on the map again, "in approximately three hours from now. We don't have much time. I want us all to be in perfect shape and have our weapons ready."

Back on the cliff…

"How many people can you make out, Longshot?" Smellerbee asked, suddenly leaning in so close that their archer's heart skipped a beat. He could smell the scent of berries coming from her hair. The boy shook his head, focusing back on their mission.

"So far five guards," he averted his eyes back to his binocular, "at least one bender it would seem though, not to mention there are regular passengers in the cars in front."

"Hm… that's not a lot of guards considering they're transporting the Fire Nation's princess… But I guess that's good news for us." Jet pondered to himself, "Can you see Azula?"

"She's sitting in the aisle seat," Longshot observed, though something about her seemed odd to him. 'I thought she'd look more evil.'

"So," Smellerbee mused, "how do we do this without getting the passengers involved?"

"Okay, this is how it'll work, guys," Jet started. "Once we get on the train, Smellerbee will disconnect the last car from the rest of the train."

"I will?" Smellerbee raised an eyebrow sarcastically. Jet shot her a 'quit joking' look and she shrugged. "Fine."

"Longshot will fire his arrows from the side windows before they notice their car has been tampered with and continue to fire support. I'll break in from the window at the same time and Smellerbee will join in from the front door. Leave the bender to me. We'll take Azula and make a jump for the river here," Jet finished his plan by pointing at another 'x' mark on the map. "This gives us less than thirty minutes."

"The train's coming," Longshot warned.

Jet grinned. "Time to party, guys."

The raven haired girl fiddled with the iron cuffs behind her back as quietly as possible. No luck. How was she supposed to make an escape anyway? She had no weapons, no connections, not even money for bribery. If she sat on the window side she could at least try to jump out of the train, though she was sure with the speed the train was going, she'd probably die a pretty painful death. 'Oh come on, think!' For the past hour or so all she has been doing was thinking, and it wasn't getting her anywhere. Her best chance is waiting for the train to pull in at the next station, not that she knew when that was going to be, if it was going to happen at all before they arrive at their destination.

Just as she was about to give up, the train gave an odd jerk as if they ran over a dead rabbit or something. She wasn't the only one surprised. Immediately, the guard sitting next to her by the window side, made eye contact at the man sitting in the seat on the other side of the aisle from the girl, and nodded toward the door at the front of their car. The other man got up and made his way over.

The next moment they all knew, something came piercing through the closed windows and instantly the guard who sat in the seats in front of her was instantly hit and fell like a ragged doll to the ground. There was a long arrow sticking out of his neck. The leader who sat in the window seat next to the now confused and panicking girl shoved her over on the aisle ground, while the two guards sitting behind shouted. The one who sat in the window seat was too late to make his escape was hit with two arrows and knocked unconscious as his head hit the floor. Including the man who went to check the front of the car, three guards remain.

"Intruders!" Jet announced as he came crashing into the window and jumping on the leader, who, due to lack of space, wasn't able to counterstrike in time. "Gotcha!"

The girl's body rolled on impulse putting her out of harm's way. She blinked in question, but was too occupied in avoiding the arrows to think. She ducked low in the opposite isle and kept her eyes on the action while mapping out her escape. This was her opportunity!

The leader kicked Jet in the stomach, distancing himself and the intruder. Without waiting, the fire nation guard fired punches and kicks of flame at Jet, but the boy was too fast, dodging in between seats._ 'As I thought, this guy's a bender.'_ Jet whipped out his hooked swords and deflected fire aimed at him while closing in on his prey. The second guard lunged himself at Jet, who, without much effort, side kicked him tumbling some feet away. Growling now, the leader straightened himself in preparation for round two.

The girl saw an opening. _'This is my chance! I need to get out of here, I need to run!'_ However, just as she was about to get up and make a run for it, guard number two, or the one who survived the surprised shower arrow attack in the beginning, came flying her way and she shrieked. The next thing she knew, her body was moving against her will again as she turned and kneed him in the gut. "Why you little!" The guard swung a powerful punch at her but she was able to avoid it. Without hesitation, she kicked him in the neck, sending him flying out the window. Guard number two went screaming to his fall. For a split second, she was sure she saw something red come out from the soul of her foot. _'What did I just do?'_

She looked at the chaotic room: one boy with hooked swords fighting a man who somehow could conjure up fire by punching, the mysterious arrows showering from outside seemed to have stopped, and there seemed to be some fighting outside the car through the front door._ 'I need to help this boy.'_ She wasn't sure how she came up with the conclusion that she need to help, but since they're both fighting against the same people, they must be on the same side, right? Besides, if these people know how to get onto a moving train in one piece, surly they know how to get off of one as well.

Jet slashed at the leader, who fired back. "Hey!" The prison girl gathered the courage to shout at the guard, inching closer to the back of the train until her back was to the door. She felt her hands on the door knob. On reflex, the guard turned around. "Leave him alone!" She shot a silent look at Jet and then gave the slightest nod. Jet took that moment and kicked the off-guard leader, who went flying toward the back of the train. Just as he was about to collide with the girl, she swung opened the door and watched him fall out. One more down, last one to go…

"Don't move!" A deep voice demanded. Everyone turned their attention toward the front of the car where a dark skinned muscled guard was choking a small girl less than half his size. "Don't move or I'll sauté this brat." He lit fire in his other hand and brought it close to the girl's face.

"Smellerbee!" Jet cried._ 'Another bender?!'_

"J, Jet… Sorry." Those were the only words she could choke out of her mouth before the man tightened his grip on her throat. Water slid out of her mouth as she desperately tried to claw his hand off of her.

"Drop your weapons" The man demanded.

Jet threw his hooked swords to the ground in front of him and glared.

_'I have to do something!_' the still handcuffed girl panicked.

"Who are you and what do you want?" The guard commanded, but before he could get his answer, Jet slipped around and swung his arms around the prisoner's neck.

"What- Hey let me go!" The girl demanded, but no one paid her any attention._ 'He was supposed to be on my side! Actually, no, you assumed that yourself. Good job, now you're captured again.'_ She kicked herself mentally.

"How about you let her go and I'll not kill the princess, hm?" Jet smirked. The guard's eyes widened then narrowed. "That's right. We know who you're transporting. So unless you want to transport a dead Princess Azula, then I suggest you let Smellerbee go."

_'Azula? Is he talking about me? I'm a princess? That makes no sense. Why would a princess be kept in a prison?'_ She thought, but the boy must've been right because the guard was having second thoughts.

However, before the trade could be made, there was a swift sound of an arrow and the last guard standing fell.

"?!" Both Jet and Azula were confused, but their question was answered quickly as the guard was replaced with Longshot, holding an unconscious Smellerbee in his arms.

"Victory" Longshot smiled.

24 Hours later, Outskirts of Senlin Villiage, in Hei Bai's Forest…

She sighed, _'how did I get myself into this situation?'_ It seems like she's a prisoner again, though this time the guards are just a bunch of kids.

"Hey Jet, are you sure we got the right person? She's not very intimidating," Smellerbee poked their hostage with a branch.

"Um…" Azula dared, speaking in almost a whisper. "Am I supposed to be intimidating?"

"Stop playing dumb! You're supposed to be the cruel spoiled Fire Nation princess who tried to roast the world into submission!" The smaller girl was finding it harder and harder to constrain her irritation.

"But I don't remember anything!"

There was a long pause.

Jet picked his ear with his little finger before speaking. "Uhh… wait, what?"

Azula wondered why they were all looking at her as if she was some sort of alien. "I, I don't mean to trouble you, but you see, I seem to have lost my memory and I would be grateful if you could tell me who I am… Or was, I guess."

There was another long pause before Jet burst out laughing. His laugh was so sarcastic yet so real that both Smellerbee and Longshot felt goosebumps running up their backs.

"Look, princess. We won't buy your crappy acting no matter how desperate you are." Jet squat down in front of her, "if you're going to continue on with this façade, I'm going to kill you." He brought his hooked blades to her neck. His jet black eyes were so deadly they didn't reflect the slightest bit of light. She could almost see fire burning in them.

Azula swallowed, a drop of sweat slipping down her face. "I'm not lying, if that's what you're implying."

"Prove it." Jet dared.

"Even if you say that… how can I prove that I'm not lying?"

Jet considered for a moment before finally deciding. "I'm going to take off your cuffs. If you attack us or try to run away, I'll kill you."

"No, Jet! She'll roast us in seconds!" Longshot warned, stepping forward to stop Jet, who shrugged off his friend's hand on his shoulder.

Azula wasn't sure what the taller boy meant by that, but getting the cuffs off would be nice. Jet took out the keys he stole from the defeated guards earlier on the train and easily freed Azula's hands. Smellerbee shut her eyes waiting for their quick death.

But nothing happened.

"Thanks." Azula said.

"Are you sure we've got the right person, Jet?" Longshot suspected, "she does look a lot like Azula, but…"

"I know what she looks like!" Jet flared. Amnesia?! How could this be possible! There's no doubt she's Azula, and the girl doesn't seem to be lying. In fact, if what she said is true, the fact that they only had two benders guarding her would make a lot more sense. Jet was starting to see the mess he got himself in. "Firebend the camp fire."

The girl blinked, looking from Jet to the camp fire. "What's bending?"

Smellerbee slapped her hand on her forehead. "This is going to take forever…"

Hours later…

"I did all those horrible things?!" Azula gasped at the stories she was hearing. "And that's why I was in a prison?"

Smellerbee handed her a small dented can filled with hot tea. Seeing the once possibly most powerful girl in their time now on the brink of tears was really awkward. She was starting to feel even sorry for this girl. "Hey, relax. It's not like you're going to attack anyone anymore… Right?"

"Of course not! I can't believe anyone would do such a horrible thing!" The taller girl took a sip of tea and looked down on the grass. "When I was in prison, I was beaten and nearly starved to death all the time. But even so, I never once thought of killing my torturer. I always thought there was a reason why I was treated so, and I was right… I…" She quickly wiped off a tear with the back of her hand before it could slip down her face. "I really was a horrible person."

Jet was leaning against a tree far away in the shadows of the night and away from the conversation. He was able to hear what the girls were talking about, but he didn't let himself be known. Sitting on the branch in the tree above him was Longshot, who was on the first watch. Longshot was the first to break their silence in thoughts. "What are we going to do now, Jet? We don't know why she was being transported to the capital and soon they'll send people to come search for her. We'll be in trouble by then. It's not too late to let her go."

Jet shook his head. "She can't firebend anymore. That gives us the advantage. And seeing how she is now, she'll cooperate with us without doubt."

_'Yeah, but what about you Jet? Can you really let yourself use a girl who's repenting for sins she can't even recall?'_ Longshot answered silently to himself. Up until then, Azula and the Fire Nation had been their enemy, something to hate, something to blame. Longshot and Smellerbee has gotten over their differences and accepted the new era after the war, but Jet, on the other hand, wasn't satisfied with the result the Avatar had provided. They had only agreed with his plan because they're family. Still though, Longshot found himself considering, this might be a good chance for Jet to see the light. If he doesn't break first, that is.

Longshot sighed quietly and didn't say anything. "Either way, we're still going to make contact with the Fire Nation soon. You're going to have to answer Zuko, since you know, we kind of have his sister in custody."

"I know, I'm working on that." Jet frowned.

To be Continued...


End file.
